A/N: I apologize if the updates start to take longer than they did in the beginning. "Vacation" over and life is back to normal. I'm always thinking about the story though, and it will be finished, but there might not be any two-chapters-a-day days anymore.

That being said, thank you so much for the reviews. I'm really glad people are enjoying this.

Rated M for language and sexual content.

Chapter 19:

It wasn't a knock that woke Tifa up after she had fallen asleep when the Turks brought her home. It was more like a pounding on the door to her bar, loud enough for her to hear upstairs, that did the trick. At first, she thought a monster may have been ramming the front door, but it was too rhythmic for that to be the case.

Tifa realized there was only one possibility: Barret Wallace. He was the only one whose hand could knock on a door and make it sound like he was trying to break it down even though he wasn't. The "knock" did not seem angry or irritated, rather, it sounded like his normal knock. He really didn't know his own strength sometimes.

There was no light coming through Tifa's bedroom windows; she must have slept all day. She looked down and realized she was still wearing her clothes – her new favorite outfit – from the night before when she was… shot. She clutched her side as the pain reminded her of what had happened.

She let her head roll to the left on her pillow and saw a vase with beautiful white flowers in it on the nightstand. Oh, that's right, there had been flowers waiting for her on her bed when she returned home from the hospital. Elena (Tifa doubted Rude or Reno would have done such a thing) must have put them in a vase for her. How sweet.

KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK

Actually, the Turks had been her saviors the night before, loathe as she was to admit that. They had rushed to her aid when the men were in a standoff and then ensured she was taken to a hospital even after she protested. And then this morning they picked her up and brought her home. How things had changed…

KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK

Alright! Tifa tried to get up but winced. There was no way she could hurry to the door to let in Barret and Marlene. She reached for her PHS on the nightstand beneath the flowers and sent a text to Barret: "Be down in a few."

She eased herself up and slowly swung her legs over the side of her bed. Every movement hurt the wound in her abdomen. At least the Turks removed her shoes for her. Everything else seemed to be in proper position – Reno must have behaved himself around his comrades.

Actually, it was Elena who had surprised Tifa the most. The blonde-haired woman had never seemed that fond of the brunette bartender, so it was shocking at how concerned she seemed when Tifa was shot. Tifa figured she and Elena were more alike than she previously considered. Elena was the only girl in the group of Turks Tifa knew, and must have to play mother quite often, given Reno's antics (the annoying little brother of the group) and Rude's indifference (some kind of stoic uncle). Tifa didn't know Tseng all that well, but he seemed to be more like Rude than the other two (the reluctant and stern father figure). That would leave Elena to be the mother of the group. Tifa knew the blonde liked Tseng – everyone knew that – and Tifa could now see the similarities between Cloud and the leader of the Turks. Both quiet and contemplative in a way that suggested deep down they could be really quite playful. Tifa found herself hoping Elena would eventually be able to confess her feelings to Tseng and that they would end up together – more for her own dreams of being with Cloud than for any real connection with Elena.

Standing up was incredibly painful. Tifa nearly fell forward from the feelings that shot through her abdomen and spidered out to the rest of her torso. She didn't remember it hurting this much last night, but maybe the adrenaline and her steadfast desire to avoid the hospital had helped. Or maybe it was because she got to see Reno again…

There she goes again, seamlessly switching her thoughts from Cloud to Reno as if they held the same special place in her heart.

She managed to stabilize herself and start walking toward her bedroom door. She placed a hand on the door frame to support herself as she mentally prepared for the trip down the stairs. Now that she was facing it alone, she really missed the Turks. Reno's taunting her like a child or a puppy may have been vexing at the time, but now she missed his attempts to lighten the mood as Rude physically helped her. She put a hand on the rail and took a deep breath.

"Ow…!" she yelped, again clutching her wound. Okay, no more deep breaths for confidence.

She took her first step down the stairs. Pain. She took another. Pain. But she had to keep going. She couldn't ignore Barret and Marlene and it would hurt just as much to turn back now. She sucked it up and continued down the stairs, leaning on the wall at the bottom to catch her breath.

She made her way to the door and unlocked the various bolts before opening it to see her old friend and his daughter standing in front of her. It felt really good to see them again.

"How ya been?" Barret asked excitedly. He had missed his friend, too.

"Tee-faah!" Marlene said in her sing-song voice.

The young girl rushed forward to hug Tifa. She seemed to have been prepared to do that and merely waited to recognize the abstract form of Tifa before lunging forward, because she didn't seem to notice Tifa's bandages. The little girl was now tall enough for head to rest at Tifa's stomach during a hug, meaning she would be hitting the stitches head on.

It was definitely something Marlene hadn't expected. She had known Tifa for years, and they hugged often. Tonight something was different. When Marlene hugged her "aunt," Tifa moved away from her once her arms were around the older woman's legs. Tifa flinched, moving her torso away from Marlene as the little girl's head hit her wound. The pain caused her to lurch slightly forward, and Marlene could feel the slight brush of Tifa's chest moving her hair in the wrong direction.

Marlene pulled back to see what she had done wrong. That's when she – and Barret – noticed Tifa's bandages.

"What the hell happened?" Barret asked. Marlene just said with fear and concern in her voice: "Tifa!"

Tifa looked like she could barely stand. She was pale and clearly in pain. Barret now felt guilty for knocking so loud and understood why it would take Tifa a few minutes to get to the front door.

"Just some rowdy patrons," Tifa explained, trying to make it seem like she just had a scratch. She didn't want Marlene to be scared.

Barret didn't believe her.

"You need to be resting!" he said in a gruff voice.

Before Tifa could protest, Barret scooped her up in his strong arms and was carrying her back to her room. Tifa suddenly felt so small, like her whole body fit in the palms of Barret's hands – well, if he had two hands. He held Tifa's head in his good hand and held his gun arm under her knees. He tried to move as quickly but gently as possible, especially up the stairs.

Tifa realized he was moving differently to try and accommodate her injury, but being carried up the stairs was only marginally less painful than walking them herself. She bounced in Barret's arms. Only she was able to traverse the stairs fluidly, as if she were gliding down them on a smooth track.

Barret tenderly placed Tifa back on her bed. Tifa thanked the stars at that moment that her side of the bed was nearest the door so she wouldn't have to bring up Cloud and her compulsive desire not to lie on his side of the bed.

Marlene came in immediately after Barret, having grabbed a washcloth and drenching it with cool water to place on Tifa's forehead. The bartender hated having to be taken care of. She much preferred to be the one doing the caring.

"When did this happen?" Barret asked.

"Yester—" Tifa couldn't even get the word out before she had to completely stop moving and shut her eyes for fear that she would throw up.

Now that Tifa was in her room with the lights turned on, Barret realized she was downright sickly looking. Her skin was not just pale – it was green.

"When was the last time you ate?" Barret asked, though he already had an idea what the answer would be.

Tifa remained on her back with her head on the pillow and her eyes closed, but made some kind of circle with her hand in an attempt to mime "yesterday."

"Yesterday?" Barret asked in shock, though he was not all that surprised.

Tifa was just happy her gesturing skills were understood.

"Shiiit," Barret said. He then looked at his daughter. "Marlene, you stay here with Tifa, I'mma gonna go make her some food."

Barret left the room to see what ingredients were available in Tifa's kitchen. Breakfast was his specialty, since it was Marlene's favorite. That little girl loved eggs and pancakes so much she wanted them for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Barret had to start getting creative to get Marlene to eat more vegetables, so he started baiting her with omelets. It seemed to be working, as he could now get Marlene to eat vegetables with her eggs. Bacon was a must, but Barret also learned how to cook sausage links and patties to give Marlene a little variety.

Tifa's refrigerator was surprisingly empty, Barret thought, for two people – one of whom was a brilliant cook. Tifa had no eggs, but she did have a bag of frozen cokatolis breasts.

He pan-seared one on the stove, adding in olive oil and some herbs he gathered from a special shelf Tifa had near the window. It wasn't a four-star meal, but it was quick and easy and full of protein.

He cut it into small pieces and brought the plate and fork to Tifa.

"Who brought you these flowers?" Marlene asked. "They're beautiful!"

"I don't know, actually," Tifa said. "There was no note."

Tifa wasn't really sure it was Reno who brought the flowers, and she didn't want to speculate too much so she wouldn't get her hopes up about them being from Cloud or Reno. Having high hopes had led to disaster one too many times in her life.

"They're not from Cloud?" Marlene asked as Barret walked into the room with a plate.

Tifa visibly winced. Barret caught the nuance, but Marlene assumed it was due to physical pain.

"I'm not sure, sweetie," Tifa said, trying to keep her voice positive. "I haven't seen Cloud in awhile."

This was the conversation she dreaded – and now it was happening as soon as she let them in. And she was injured. Just all around a bad moment.

"What kind are they?" Marlene asked.

Thank god for a child's short attention span.

"They're Nibelweiss flowers," Tifa said. "They bloom on the trails of Mt. Nibel. They're my favorite, because they remind me of Nibelheim."

"They're pretty," Marlene said again, leaning forward to smell the blooms.

Barret offered Tifa the plate. She was in that stage where she knew she needed to eat, but the thought of food made her want to vomit. She knew that meant she had to eat, so she propped herself up against her headboard and picked at the meat on the plate. She took a few bites. Within minutes, she felt much better.

"Marlene, could you go get Tifa some aspirin?" Barret asked.

Marlene nodded her head eagerly and ran from the room. Such a helpful little girl.

"So, what happened?" Barret asked Tifa.

"I got shot," Tifa responded with a tinge of guilt.

"What!?"

"A couple patrons were fighting and pulled guns, I knocked one of them out but the other freaked out and accidentally pulled the trigger," Tifa said, trying to explain the situation in a way that made it all seem harmless, as if that were possible.

"Where are the bastards?"

"The one who shot me is dead," Tifa looked down at her plate. She hadn't wanted the man to die, as it seemed pretty obvious to her that he hadn't intended to pull the trigger. "The Turks showed up just after the guns were pulled."

"The TURKS?"
"They've actually been helping out a lot around here. The monsters have gotten so bad in the city, and they're usually around to help me fight them."

Barret couldn't believe what he was hearing. The Turks? Helping? There must be some angle to it. The people who dropped the plate on Sector 7 and harassed them continuously as they tried to save the planet couldn't be helping Tifa just to be nice. They were no better than the monsters that terrorized the city, in his mind.

"Barret?"

"What?"

"They really do seem different now. Reno even apologized for Sector 7 and said it's his biggest regret in life."

"Reno? You on a first-name basis with them now?"

"Barret…"

"You're too damn forgiving, Tifa," Barret lectured. "There are some people who don't deserve forgiveness. And anyone associated with Shinra is right at the top of the list in my book."

"Everyone deserves forgiveness, Barret," Tifa said, her voice sullen.

She didn't want to argue with Barret – she knew he had a point. She wasn't really trying to get him to forgive the Turks, she just wanted him to be okay with them – well, okay with her getting close to them, to Reno specifically. She didn't want one of Barret's lectures or his disappointment if something did happen between her and Reno.

Not that she was actually considering that, of course.

"Remember the reactors we blew up? People died, but we deserve forgiveness, right?" Tifa asked, her voice soft and dripping with sadness.

Barret lowered his head and shook it from side to side.

"We were trying to save the world," he said, more to convince himself than her. "No one but Shinra scum was supposed to get hurt."

"But they did!" Tifa said, more forcefully. Her stitches hurt and she flinched.

"Why you so hung up on this?"

Marlene returned with the aspirin and a glass of water. Tifa took the pills with a gulp of water and placed the glass near the flowers.

"I don't know what you been up to," Barret said, shaking his head again. "I just hope you know what you're doing."

"Barret…"

"I know, I know, I trust you," he relented. He then picked Marlene up and put her on his lap. "We should probably let Aunt Tifa rest, and we've had a long day, too."

"The guest room is ready for you."

"Can I sleep in here with Auntie Tifa?" Marlene asked, looking up at her father, who then looked at Tifa.

"Of course you can, sweetheart," she said, a warm smile spreading across her lips.

"Just be careful with her stitches," Barret warned.

"I'll be careful!" Marlene promised.

The little girl had grown up in a world where she was forced to mature rather quickly. Back in Sector 7 she had helped Tifa tend to the wounds of the other AVALANCHE members, so she was already quite prepared to help Tifa change the bandages around her torso.

Tifa was grateful for the help, since twisting was too painful for her at the moment, and she was exhausted again just from the little trip downstairs and her interactions with Barret.

She knew that allowing Marlene to share her bed meant the little girl would be sleeping on Cloud's side, but she didn't see the harm. If she slept on Cloud's side it meant he was really gone, but if Marlene slept there then it was like Cloud just gave up his side for the night. At least that's the logic on which Tifa decided.

She turned off the light and settled into bed, knowing she wouldn't be awake for long.

"Cloud grew up in Nibelheim, too, right?" Marlene asked.

"Mmhmm."

"So maybe the flowers really are from him."

"I hope so," Tifa said to humor the child.

Later…

Tifa felt arms wrap around her from behind, taking care to avoid her injury. She was dreaming, so she went ahead and accepted the comfort, sinking back into his form and even scooting her rear end up against his hips. She let out a soft moan, happy to be with Cloud again in her dreams, even if her dream-self was injured as well. The feeling of being held by a man was what she missed more than just about anything else at the moment.

His hands moved upward on her body to rest on her breasts and she whimpered, though she was not in pain. Even in her dream she knew that Marlene was in the bed next to her and didn't want to disturb the little girl with whatever Cloud had in mind.

Wait – this was a dream – there were no consequences, so she could give in as she pleased. She shifted as Cloud fondled her breasts over her camisole, circling her nipples with his index fingers. She pressed her back end into his hips to feel his erection against her. Cloud bent his knees to cradle her back against him, and moved his hips gently against her.

Tifa could still feel the pain of her wound in the dream, but was enjoying the closeness.

Cloud's hands started to wander south – again skipping over her abdomen – to rest at the pair of pajama shorts she was wearing. His hands played with the waistband before diving under, with his left hand – long, spindly fingers – reaching for the front of her panties. This, unfortunately, caused his arm to brush against her wound and she winced.

"I just wanted to come check on you, yo," a voice said in her ear.

All at once Tifa realized this was no dream. And that was not Cloud. Without regard for her injury, she flipped around in her bed, horrified to discover Reno had snuck into her house and gotten into bed with her. She twisted so quickly that he was startled fell off the bed. Thankfully, his head didn't hit the nightstand on the way down, or else he would have found himself sprawled on the floor next to Tifa Lockhart's bed, wet, and covered with damaged flowers. Not the worst way he had ever been discovered in someone else's home, but certainly not a way he would like.

He hit the floor with a thud and Tifa cried out in pain.

"Tifa?" Marlene's tired little voice spoke up due to the ruckus.

"Oh, shit there's a kid in here," Reno thought to himself, suddenly becoming very embarrassed.

Without another thought he slid under the bed to wait for an escape. Well, now, this situation felt very familiar.

Tifa flipped the light on to make sure she wasn't crazy – Reno really had broken into her house and groped her as she slept. She didn't see him on the floor but the flower vase had just finished wobbling. That bastard.

Barret opened the door and came charging into the room.

"You alright? I heard a scream," he said.

"Yeah, I just turned in my sleep and hurt my side," Tifa said.

She pulled the blanket down and lifted her camisole to see if the stitches had ripped. Her side definitely hurt, but she didn't appear to be bleeding.

"Marlene?"

"I was just worried about Tifa," the little girl said.

"Thank god she didn't notice him," Tifa said a silent prayer of thanks.

Barret nodded to the two girls and left, closing the door behind him. Tifa picked up her water glass and looked at Marlene.

"Marlene, could I trouble you to get me some fresh water?" she asked sweetly.

Marlene agreed and ran out of the room.

Tifa felt the bed shake underneath her and sat up as Reno scooted out from underneath.

"Thanks for gettin' rid of the kid, babe," he said, standing up and dusting himself off.

"What the hell are you doing here?" Tifa hissed. She was whispering, but Reno could tell she would be yelling if she could.

"I came to make sure you were okay," he said, shrugging.

"By breaking into my house and groping me in my sleep?"

"Hey, you started it, I was just responding."

"You have to get out of here, Marlene will be back any second."

Reno grinned.

"You could send her away again, yanno, if ya wanted to continue where we left off."

Tifa moved to hit him but the pain came shooting back and she doubled over.

"Reno…" she said, rather pitifully.

"Okay, okay, I'm sorry," he said, placing his arms around her and helping her back up and onto the bed. "Feel better, yo." He kissed her forehead and seemed to vanish silently from the room.

Marlene came back in with a fresh glass of water and handed it to Tifa.

"Thank you, sweetie," she said.

She took a large sip and set it down next to the flowers. Both girls fell asleep easily, though Tifa was fearful she might have another "dream" again involving Reno.

Meanwhile…

Reno cursed his luck. He was in bed with her, his hand moving things forward, but of course that kid and her big oaf father would be visiting. And next week he had to fly Rufus to Junon. His carefully crafted plan was coming undone. He'd either have to stay away until her visitors left or find some way to woo her from afar. But touching her was so much more fun…

He hadn't intended to do that, of course. He was just going to cuddle – something he hated – to comfort her. But then she had to go backing her shapely ass into his loins. It couldn't be helped. He thought she knew it was him. Who else would it be? Oh, right… Strife.

He wondered how far he would have gotten if he hadn't said anything. A smile crossed his lips as he considered that possibility. He hadn't touched her in a week. This whole be-a-nice-guy thing was killing him, even if it was completely necessary.

At least tomorrow was Saturday. He could spend the day scheming and finding an opportunity to be near her. Maybe he could just walk right up to her. That big man might instigate a fight and cause her to step in to stop it, proving she had warmed up to the Turks. Who knows, maybe he and the human firearm would become pals. He laughed to himself.

The next day…

Oh, sweet Elena. Sweet, sweet, sympathetic Elena.

Reno suddenly found her overly caring saccharine side endearing – but only in this moment because it was advantageous to him.

He had slept in later than usual due to his twilight excursion into Tifa's bedroom – the second time he had been in there and still he was not having sex with her; something that needed to be rectified soon – and was awoken by a nagging ring. When Elena wanted someone's attention, she would not stop until she got it.

He considered throwing the phone against the wall to the grave site of his alarm clock, but that would necessitate the purchase of a new phone and a new alarm clock, and he wasn't making two stops today.

He let out an exaggerated, immature groan and picked up the phone.

"Yo," he said before getting an earful from Elena about why it took him so long to answer. "It's Saturday," was his response.

From there the conversation actually became interesting. Elena asked Reno if he wanted to go see how Tifa was doing and if she needed any help since she was all alone. Reno wasn't about to tell her that the oaf and the kid were with her – he couldn't let Elena know that he knew that, since the Turks had spent all day Friday together and parted ways from a different bar early in the morning, as Seventh Heaven was closed when they finished patrol.

But Reno being Reno, he couldn't let Elena know he was even the least bit interested in visiting their favorite bartender.

"Meh," he said, as coolly as possible. "Got nothin' better to do I guess."

Nailed it.

Elena hung up after Reno agreed to meet her at Seventh Heaven in an hour.

"He thinks he's so smooth," she said out loud to herself in a smug tone.

Reno was trying to play this cool, but Elena saw right through it. He hadn't been himself all week and his excuses didn't add up. Elena suspected Rude was starting to get wise as well. After they found the flowers on Tifa's bed, Rude kept glancing over at Reno as if silently daring him to admit to what he had done.

She didn't know how he got the flowers, but she knew it was him. She actually thought it was really sweet. It was so unlike Reno. Elena had never seen him actually like a girl before and found his efforts charming. She also hated the fact that she was suddenly jealous of how Reno was treating a woman. Even with those four days of avoiding the bar – which Elena supposed must have been some part of a plan – he was treating Tifa better than Elena had been treated by a guy in a while. She actually wished Tseng was acting more like Reno.

"Tch," she said at the thought.

Elena realized Rude's chances with Tifa were probably over, but Reno might just have a shot if he actually did something more than flirting with her from a distance. That's one of the reasons she made sure to invite him to go with her to see Tifa. She also invited Rude, of course.

Her other reasons were that she hated being alone. It's why she was so dedicated to her job. Her coworkers were her own little messed up family and when she was away from them she was lonely. She hated her days off and always tried to get her fellow Turks to go out for drinks, even though going to Seventh Heaven meant she would be ignored.

She finished getting ready and walked out the door, planning to stop for some lunch before meeting the others.

The Turks approached Seventh Heaven and knocked. No answer. They looked at each other and shrugged, assuming it would just take Tifa longer to get down the stairs in her condition. But after several minutes, she still hadn't answered.

"Don't think she's here, yo," Reno said, walking back to the sidewalk with his hands in his pockets.

Rude and Elena sighed and turned to meet Reno. Probably should have called first, but they assumed she would still be bedridden today.

As luck would have it, Tifa was actually walking down the street back toward her bar, ice cream cone in hand. Unluckily, she was with one of her former AVALANCHE companions and a little girl.

Elena felt like they were all suddenly in an old western showdown. Three against three, even if three of the three weren't putting up a threat. Tifa smiled when she saw the Turks and let out a little wave, but the large man next to her – Elena really didn't know his name – looked pretty menacing.

"We came to check on you, yo," Reno said, his arms folded across his chest as if he didn't want to be there. Tifa knew better, and enjoyed this little secret they had.

"How are you?" Rude asked, ignoring Barret's presence.

"She's doin fine," Barret answered for Tifa.

Tifa chuckled and licked her ice cream cone before looking up at Barret. Reno got a little lightheaded.

"I can answer for myself, Barret," she said without a hint of indignation. She actually seemed to giggle a little as she said it.

"So, you're feeling better then?" Elena asked.

"It still hurts a lot, but much better today than yesterday," Tifa said. "I used a cure spell this morning."

"That's good to hear," Rude said, though as usual his voice hid all emotion.

"Thank you all for everything you did," Tifa said before turning again to look at Barret. "They helped the night I was hurt. They took me to the hospital, waited for me during my surgery, and came back in the morning to take me home."

Barret looked genuinely shocked.

"They did all that?" he asked, his jaw nearly on the ground.

Tifa nodded her head. "Mmhmm." She licked her ice cream cone a few more times. Reno's eye twitched a little.

"Did you ever figure out where those flowers came from?" Elena asked.

Reno wanted to shoot her a look or to smile, but he settled on remaining exactly as he had before – as if he weren't the sender and didn't give a rat's ass who was.

"Nope," Tifa said, though she didn't seem upset or even interested in the mystery. Then she decided to toy with Reno a little. "I think they must be from Cloud, he's the only one who knows they're my favorite."

She smiled at no one in particular and took another long lick of ice cream. Reno wanted to leave to get away from this torture. Reno wanted to stay and watch her lick every last ounce of that ice cream.

"Would you all like a drink?" Tifa asked.

Barrett took a deep breath. He didn't appear onboard with the idea, but he didn't appear entirely against it either. If these bastards had helped Tifa when she needed it, he might be able to overlook their past murders – at least for the afternoon.

Marlene didn't seem to connect that these were the same people responsible for kidnapping Aeris two years ago. Of course, that was Tseng, so she probably didn't even know.

"Sure," Rude said in typical Rude fashion.

"Always down to get plastered," Reno added.

Elena nodded her head.

There was a heaviness in the air inside the bar, filled still with the tension between the Turks and Barret. Tifa hoped that drinking with the Turks would help Barret see that they could be forgiven. Barret wasn't so sure. That red-headed one had pushed the button that killed Biggs, Wedge, Jessie, and thousands of other people.

Flashback…

Barret had been firing at a Shinra helicopter that was flying near the top of the Sector 7 pillar when Cloud and Tifa joined him. It had been awhile since he had seen either of them – actually, he thought Cloud had died – so he was surprised to see him at all. He didn't have time to be suspicious of their absence, as he was trying to keep Shinra out of his Sector.

The helicopter swooped in toward the top of the tower and a tall, slender redhead jumped out and onto the platform where AVALANCHE was standing. Barret fired at the man, but he dodged his bullets and ran to the control panel.

"You're too late," he snarled, looking right at them. "Once I push this button…"

Barret and Cloud started running toward him but were too far away. Reno pushed the button just as easily as if it had opened a garage door. He then looked back at them with that sadistic, nonchalant grin on his face.

"That's all, folks! Mission accomplished," he said in such a way Barret almost thought he couldn't have known what he had just done.

"We have to disarm it! Cloud! Barret! Please!" Tifa begged.

That's when Barret knew that the scrawny red-haired freak knew exactly what he was doing. He looked at her with some kind of creepy, wild intensity and grinned even wider.

"I can't have you do that," he sneered. "No one gets in the way of Reno and the Turks…"

And then he lunged at them.

Present day…

Barret just couldn't let it go. He had sat in silence for some time as Tifa fielded questions from the jackasses or whatever their names were. She answered pleasantly, and Barret hated how she could be so accepting of a bunch of murderers in her bar. He tried to contain his anger, for Tifa's sake and for Marlene's, but dammit, he just couldn't let it go.

He slammed his fist on the counter, causing everyone's drinks to jump a little. All three Turks, Tifa, and Marlene (who was sitting at a table with some coloring books while the grown-ups talked) looked at him in surprise.

"GodDAMMIT" Barret yelled, his voice gruff and reverberating off the walls. "I can't just sit here with these murderers Tifa, I'm sorry. I can't."

He stood up to leave, but Tifa spoke to calm him down.

"Barret, please, we don't have to fight them anymore," she said. Her voice could soothe a dragon. "I think you should also remember that they didn't fight you all in Wutai and stood back when we going after Sephiroth."

"She's right, yo," Reno piped up, though he didn't look at Barret or Tifa. He took another sip of his drink before continuing. "We had orders to kill you all, but we kept letting you go."

This didn't alleviate Barret's anger at all.

"Well ain't that jes' dandy," Barret said condescendingly.

Reno shrugged. He actually was attempting to make the situation better. Oh, well. He tried.

"Barret, really, they're good customers and they haven't caused any trouble," she said. "Besides, Reno apologized for Sector 7."

Had he? Had he actually said he was sorry? Now Reno was thinking back to the first few times he had tried to talk to Tifa. Uh, yep, nope, he had not actually apologized. He said she killed people and they were just following orders – that definitely wasn't an apology or a step into her good graces – and then he said dropping the plate was one of his demons. That was sort of an apology, but he would have argued otherwise.

But he took it as a chance to score a few points with Tifa. It seemed like she was giving him a chance to make amends with one of her friends. He should probably take it.

"It eats me up inside," he said, though his tone was a little sarcastic.

Barret growled. Was he a human or some kind of monster-human-cyborg hybrid?

"Oh, I just bet it does," Barret snapped.

Reno actually started praying that no one would ask him whether he would do it again right now. The truth is he would if he was instructed to do so, and it would kill him inside just as much as it did two years ago. But orders were orders and Shinra kept him employed. He really didn't want to have to say that in front of Tifa though, as it would definitely take him two steps back in her eyes. He supposed if he were asked he could lie, but that might make him look weak in front of Rude and Elena. He figured the best course of action was to say something else to try and get off the topic.

"It does," he said plainly. "And I think I've done enough around here to make amends for it. I don't need to be judged by the likes of you."

Now Reno stood up and reached in his pockets to produce some gil to pay his tab, even though Tifa had been the one to suggest drinks. Looks like he wouldn't be able to catch her alone or prove his worth today. He'd just have to take the hit to avoid hurting his pride.

"Reno, you don't have to leave," Tifa said, honestly shocking everyone. "Barret, please, we have to move on from this. There's no point in holding grudges."

Barret sat back on his stool and pouted. He didn't like this one bit, but he trusted Tifa's judgment.

"Fine, let's just keep drinking," Barret said. Tifa smiled and poured him another drink.

"Now you're speaking my language," Reno said, taking his seat again.

He took the money back as well. He'd find a way to "tip" her later.

The rest of the afternoon went along rather pleasantly, Tifa thought. And she was feeling well enough to open the bar, with plans to close early if she needed. She was wearing a sundress with red flowers on it to cover her midriff and hide her bandages. It had been driving Reno insane all day. In one swift motion he could have her naked thanks to a dress like that.

He had taken several cigarette breaks in the hope that she would take the hint and take the trash out for another secret rendezvous, but she didn't. He saw her leave to take the trash out but thought it would be too obvious if he followed her. Think, man, think. What could he do.

On his way back from the bathroom (he thought maybe he could at least catch her near the back room) he saw his answer: That little girl. Get in good with the child and her little child mind would tell Tifa to like him. The little girl had been coloring by herself at a table in the corner of the bar near the counter, and Tifa was keeping a close eye on her. Barret also spent some time with the girl, but was – surprisingly – having some interesting conversation with Rude and Elena.

"You really should have stayed and drank with us," Rude said, a little tipsy, regarding their encounter in Wutai two years ago.

"Shiite, I kinda wanted to," Barret said. "But I just as equally wanted to kick yo asses."

"That's what I wanted to do to you all!" Elena stated before all three broke out into laughter.

Alcohol really did solve all of life's problem, Reno thought. He strolled past the bar to where Marlene was sitting with her coloring books.

"Can I sit with you?" Reno asked.

The little girl looked at him and turned red, then nodded and smiled. Reno pulled a chair around the table to sit next to her and look over her drawings.

"I'm Reno, what's your name?"

"…Marlene," she said with a giggle.

"What are you drawing here, Marlene?"

"Cloud. Do you know him?"

Reno rolled his eyes so the girl couldn't see. What was everyone's obsession with that guy?

"Yeah, I know him. He's alright," Reno lied through his teeth. All part of the plan.

"I hope he comes back soon," Marlene said, her voice saddened.

"We all do." Another lie. And this one stung. Reno needed more time with Tifa before that pokey-headed bucket of fail came back into the picture. As it stood now, Tifa probably wouldn't have any concern about running back into Cloud's arms. He needed to change that.

"Hey, Marlene," the little girl looked up at him with wide eyes. "Have you ever been in a helicopter before?"

"No, but I've seen them."

"Well, I'm a helicopter pilot. What would you say if I took you and your dad and your auntie Tifa up in one someday?"

Marlene smiled, showing all her teeth, though at least one baby tooth was missing.

"You'll take auntie Tifa, too?" Marlene asked.

"Sure, if she wants to."

"Did you give Tifa those flowers?"

And suddenly Reno found himself lost for words. Thankfully Tifa came over and put a hand on Marlene's shoulder to interrupt them.

"Is he being nice?" she asked the little girl.

"Tch," Reno said under his breath. As if he would antagonize a little girl.

Marlene eagerly nodded her head. "He said he would take us all up in a helicopter!"

"Did he?" Tifa looked at Reno. He looked at her through heavy lids and nodded. Tifa crouched down to Marlene's level. "Well, that certainly sounds fun, doesn't it?"

Marlene agreed. Reno mentally high-fived himself. Pure genius.

"Okay, let's let Reno get back to his friends, okay Marlene?"

Marlene smiled again and grabbed a new piece of paper. "Byyye Reno…" she said without looking at him.

Reno sat back at the bar next to Rude and resumed drinking.

"Have a nice conversation?" Elena asked.

Reno was confused. He hadn't noticed Elena and Rude watching him talk to Marlene. Barret was lost in his drink at the moment, or he probably wouldn't have approved. Elena had noticed it first, and casually smacked Rude in the arm with the back of her hand to get his attention. A slight smirk escaped Rude's lips when he saw Reno talking to the little girl. Rude didn't think Reno cared for children, though he supposed the redhead had quite a bit in common with them, given his immaturity and penchant for pranks.

He wasn't able to get Tifa alone that night, but he figured getting the kid to warm up to him was just as good – at least as far as Tifa's affections went. He did want to take Tifa up in the helicopter, just not with Barret and Marlene. Still, whatever worked. He walked home that night with his usual swagger, his hands clasped behind his head.

Barret helped Tifa close up the bar since her injury had started bothering her again. The brunette took Marlene and her drawings upstairs to get ready for bed. The little girl helped Tifa change her bandages again. While changing the bandages, Tifa looked over at the top picture on Marlene's drawing.

"Marlene, what's that?" she asked.

"That's a helicopter," she said matter-of-factly, as if the black blob with a bunch of lines sticking out of the top of it was just as clear as a photograph.

"Mmhmm," Tifa said.

"And that's daddy, and me, and you, and Reno," Marlene added.

Tifa bit the insides of her mouth to keep from saying what she wanted to say. He was crafty, she had to give him that. But bribing a child to try and get Tifa into bed? That was low. That was real low.

"Let's go to bed, sweetie," Tifa said, kissing Marlene on the forehead.

Tifa settled into bed herself and had just turned off the lights when her phone buzzed. Despite her annoyance with Reno for clearly targeting Marlene that night, she felt a smile cross her lips knowing that it would be a text from him.

"Helicopter tomorrow?" it said.

"Oh, was he really serious?" Tifa thought.

This was certainly a strange turn of events, she thought. Was Reno trying to be… nice? Had to be an act. But Marlene did seem excited about his suggestion now…

Tifa drifted off to sleep before she could think too much longer about Reno's game. If it made Marlene happy she would go along with it, provided Barret would trust a Turk enough to let them fly him into the sky.

A/N: I told you this story would be agonizingly long. I don't want the relationship to move too quickly. And don't worry, CLOUD WILL COME BACK. Eventually. Don't know how many more chapters it will take, but I have his return all planned out already.